A thief to fall for another thief
by horsechick27
Summary: While on a raid Scipio meets Katelyn, another thief like him who is the greatest. Takes place in the story line but it still good. I give the plot line to the producers and Cornelia Funke and only own Katelyn Smith.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Night raid

Katelyn Smith clipped her cloak to her shoulders. She was decked out in a black strap less tube top, black jeans, and black ankle boots. She slipped her mask that covered her eyes down to her cheekbones. The mask was black with a red borderline around the face part. Katelyn walked out the door of the abandoned warehouse she lived in and crept into the night. The city always had a mysterious look to it at night and that was how Katelyn liked it. "Good night for a raid" she said softly. The night shrouded her from eyes that were probably awake. Katelyn walked into the rich part of the city and eyed for a large house to rob. She finally chose a large house that was probably the biggest in the neighborhood. Katelynn climbed over the fence that probably led to the backyard and tried the backdoor. Katelyn twisted the knob but it was locked. "Damn it" she hissed and stepped away from the door and saw a deck above it. Katelyn smirked to herself and took a rope that she had in her cloak and threw it up to the deck railing and the rope wrapped itself around the railing. Katelynn pulled on the rope to see if it was strong enough to hold her weight. When she was sure it would hold her weight she began to climb up to the deck. The deck was only a short distance from the ground so it didn't take long for Katelyn to climb it and land on the deck. "This is gonna be fun" she whispered with a smirk and opened the deck door. The house was extremely large on the inside and was entirely made out of marble except the furniture. The furniture was all leather and looked like it came from the best furniture makers in Venice. Katelyn crept as silently as a cat through the house and looked around for any valuables. Katelyn stole a pair of reading glasses she had found on the desk, pure silver knives, and even some small china cups. Katelyn stuffed the items in the pockets of her cloak and was about to head back to the door when she felt a hand grab her wrist and spin her around. Katelyn was face to face with a boy who had dark brown hair and brown eyes and wore a black trench coat, dark blue jeans, black high heeled boots, and a black mask that had the appearance of a bird. "What are you doing here, this is my robbery" he hissed. "Well you snooze you lose, I got here first" Katelyn hissed back. "Oh really, then where are your stolen items?" he asked with a smirk. "In the pockets of my cloak, I don't carry them in a bag" Katelyn said with a frown. "Impressive, but it was a good thing that you were leaving than I can get more stuff" the boy said arrogantly. Katelynn put her hands on her hips and raised her eye brows. "Who the hell are you?" she asked. "I am the Thief Lord, greatest thief in Venice" he said proudly. "You look a bit young" Katelyn said raising her eye brows. "Look who's talking, how old are you 15, 16" he said smirking. "Sixteen, if you must know and I bet that's how old you are" Katelyn said right back. "Whatever, and who might you be?" he asked. "I'm Katelyn Smith, best thief in Italy" Katelyn said bowing a little. "Yeah right" he scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest. "Wanna bet?" Katelyn smirked and walked over to the deck door but the Thief Lord spun her around. "Lucky for you I'm not a gambling man and besides I think that I'm the greatest thief in Venice and the papers think so too" the Thief lord said. "I only said Italy" Katelyn said. "It doesn't matter, we have our loot now let's get the hell out of here" he said and gestured to the door and Katelyn nodded. "Fine by me" Katelyn said and they escaped out the door, climbed down the rope, climbed the fence, and ran from the house. They stopped to catch their breath in the middle of the square. "Well that wasn't so bad" Katelyn huffed. "No kidding" the Thief Lord huffed and leaned his weight on his knees. "By the way what's your name?" Katelyn asked. "Scipio" he said and stood up. "Well it was great meeting you Scipio but I've gotta go" Katelyn said and was about to head back to the warehouse but Scipio grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. "You're not seriously thinking of going to the docks are you?" he asked with seriousness. "Yeah, that's where I live" Katelyn shrugged. "I wouldn't if I were you, that's where all the rapists, gangsters, and thugs go to hang out late at night and like to live in those warehouses" Scipio said. "Okay, than what do you suggest I do?" Katelyn asked. "Come with me" Scipio said letting go of her wrist and started walking and Katelyn followed. Scipio led Katelyn to a large movie theatre that said the Stella in big bright letters on the front. "This way" he said softly and led her to an alley way Scipio rang a large bell that was above the door and a boy with dark skin answered the door. "Where have you been?" he asked. "Out on a raid and I met a friend, Katelyn this is Mosca" Scipio said and gestured her to come to his side. "Nice to meet you" Mosca said and opened the door wider for the two to come in. The Stella was very large and had red velvet seats in ten to twenty rows and a large movie screen was in front with a medium sized stage below it. A wooden table stood in from of the stage. Katelyn could see air mattresses on a floor above them. A girl with black hair in a ponytail came bounding down the stairs. "Hey Scipio and who's she" she asked brightly. "Katelyn this is Hornet, she's the only girl in the gang but acts like a mother to all of us" Scipio said. "Hello Katelyn it's nice to meet you and I promise you that you'll like it here" Hornet said and shook Katelyn's hand. "Likewise" Katelyn said smiling a little. "Hey Scip, who's the new girl?" a boy with red hair that looked like a hedgehog came running down the stairs. "Katelyn this is Riccio" Scipio said. "Hey Katelyn" Riccio smiled and had a mouth of bad teeth. "Nice to meet you" Katelyn said cringing a little but not that much. A boy with brown hair that came down to his ears with a little boy with blonde hair came running down the stairs. "Scipio, I heard we have a new girl" the boy with brown hair said. "Yes, Katelyn this is Prosper and his little brother Bo, I brought them here last night" Scipio said. "Nice to meet you" Bo said with a smile. Katelyn smiled and knelt down to his level and took off her black mask. "It's nice to meet you Bo" she said sweetly. "Is she staying permanently?" Prosper asked. "That's up to her" Scipio said crossing his arms and Katelyn could see that he had taken off his mask. "Sure, I'll stay since my place was a rathole to begin with and I have nowhere else to go" Katelyn said. "Perfect, you shall have the spare mattress" Hornet said and grabbed Katelyn's hand and dragged her up the stairs and led her to a circular room where mattresses were lined up in different areas. Hornet dragged out a spare mattress and set it in an empty spot in the room. Katelyn saw that Hornet's mattress was surrounded by a mountain of books. Hornet came back with an armful of blankets and a pillow. "Here you'll need these" she said. Hornet went into the bathroom to change into her pajamas and came back in light blue pajama pants and a red shirt and she noticed that Katelyn didn't bring any other clothes with her. "Do you need some pajamas" Hornet asked. "If you don't mind" Katelyn said and Hornet grabbed a pair of black shorts and a black t shirt from a large bag. "This is the wardrobe where we keep spare clothes" Hornet said and gave the clothes to Katelyn to change into. Katelyn went into the bathroom and stripped out of her cloak, shirt, jeans, and boots. Katelyn changed into the pajamas and folded up her clothes and put the mask and boots on top of them and walked out of the bathroom. When she came out Hornet was sitting on her mattress with a book on her lap. Katelyn walked over to her and sat down on the mattress. "What are you reading" she asked. "The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe my favorite book" Hornet said not even looking up from the book. "I've read that book and loved it" Katelyn said. "Really, I've read it a hundred and fifty times and still can't get enough of it" Hornet said. "Same here" Katelyn yawned and got off of the mattress. "See you in the morning Hornet" "See you in the morning" Hornet said and Katelyn went back to her mattress and lied down and put her clothes at the foot of the mattress. Katelyn crawled under the covers and fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.


	2. Barbarossa

Chapter 2

Barbarossa

The next morning Katelyn woke up to the sun shining in her face. Katelyn got up off the mattress and picked up her clothes and went to the bathroom. Hornet was still asleep so she made sure to stay extra quiet and not wake her up. Katelyn closed the bathroom door and changed out of her pajamas and into her jeans, strap less top, and boots and left her mask folded up at the foot of her bed. Katelyn walked down the stairs and saw that the others were eating and they turned around when they heard her coming down. "Morning Katelyn" Prosper greeted. "Morning boys" Katelyn said and sat down at the table and helped herself to some food. "Don't forget Prosper, we have to go try and sell our loot to Barbarossa today" Riccio said. "Thanks for reminding me" Prosper muttered darkly and Katelyn raised an eye brow. "Who's Barbarossa?" Katelyn asked. "Only the cheapest pig known to man. Whenever Scip brings back loot we try to sell it to Barbarossa for money and he give us half of what the items are worth" Mosca said. "But hopefully because of Prop here that'll change and we'll get more money" Bo said and hugged Prosper's arm. "Can I go with you guys, I have nothing better to do today" Katelyn asked. "Sure" Riccio said. "Great, just let me know when and we'll go from there" Katelyn said and returned to her breakfast. Soon afterward Hornet came running down the stairs. "Sorry guys I overslept" she said breathlessly and grabbed herself a plate and got herself some breakfast. "It's al right and Katelyn just said that she's going to come with us to Barbarossa's shop" Riccio said. "Impressive, and I hope that we can get some decent money this time" Hornet said and started eating her breakfast.

Around noon Riccio, Prosper, and Katelyn walked down the cobblestone streets of Venice to a small antique junk shop near the square. The shop was filled with all kinds of antiques that tourists would bring back home with them. Behind the counter stood a fat man with a white beard and beady eyes and little hair. "Watch and learn Katelyn" Riccio whispered and Katelyn just rolled her eyes. "Oh don't worry I will" she said sarcastically and the three went into the shop. The man behind the counter must have been expecting them because he was waiting at the center of the store for them and wasn't happy with them apparently. "What are you smiling at, hedgehog boy" the man snapped and closed a portable mirror. "Go wait in the office and don't touch anything, understood" the man pointed to the back of a shelf and motioned for them to wait for him there. The three walked behind the shelf and Riccio and Prosper sat in the chairs while Katelyn stood with her arms crossed over her chest. "So, that fat hog is Barbarossa?" she whispered. "The one and only" Riccio whispered back. "What a horrid man" Prosper said. "I call him a fat head slimeball" Riccio whispered. "I'm with you on that one" Katelyn whispered back and Barbarossa came into the office. "I see the Thief Lord has brought in new little thieves and a pretty girl at that. Now let the dog see the bone" he said and sat himself down in the chair. Prosper stood up and dumped the bag of loot on to the table. Barbarossa took a piece of it and studied it with curiousity. "A couple of decent items here, so I'm going to offer a hundred, which is very generous. Well let's just say I'm in a generous mood today" he said grinning. Katelyn glared at him and shook her head, Scipio probably worked his ass of getting those things and they deserved more than a hundred bucks but luckily Prosper spoke up before Katelyn could say something that could ruin the deal. "A thousand or no deal" Prosper said flatly. The smile that Barbarossa had on his face earlier had faded and his eyes widened. Riccio and Katelyn grinned at seeing Barbarossa look so surprised. "Have you lost your mind, boy. I've made you a generous offer, too generous and insult me with fanciful nonsense. Tell the Thief Lord to send the boat boy or the hornet girl next time if he wants to continues doing business with Ernesto Barbarossa" he said and made a hand gesture with his hand which caused Katelyn to raise her eye brows in disgust. "I'm the Thief Lord's official negotiator now" Prosper said and got up and loaded all the loot back into the bag. "Three hundred for the lot much of it's rubbish" Barbarossa said carelessly. Katelyn narrowed her eyes in disgust and Prosper bent down to look Barbarossa in the eye. "Eight" he said flatly. "Four" Barbarossa said.

"Seven"

"Four seven five"

"Six eight seven and a half"

Barbarossa chuckled and Riccio and Katelyn looked at each other in disgust. "You're a clever lad so I'm going to give you five hundred for the last time I let you treat me like a child" Barbarossa said and took out a check for five hundred dollars out of a safe and gave it to Prosper. Barbarossa led the three out of the shop and just as they were about to leave he grabbed Prosper and Riccio by their shoulder and Katelyn just turned around and stopped. "A client of mine is looking for someone who will shall we say precule a certain item for him" Barbarossa said. "Well if he's sick then" Riccio said but Barbarossa cut him off. "He's looking for someone who will steal something for him. Is that clear enough for your moggey ears?" Barbarossa hissed. Katelyn walked over and put her arm protectively around Riccio and glared at Barbarossa. "Tell the Thief Lord there's big money in it for him" Barbarossa said and released his grip on the boy's shoulders and the three walked away. "I hate that man" Katelyn said with a frown and shuddered when he said that she was pretty. Katelyn didn't think of herself as pretty, she had blonde hair that was on the borderline of brown, a thin/athletic built from running around when she stole things, and blue eyes that showed innocence but had a slight fire in them. "Now you know how we feel" Riccio said and they kept walking until they were around the corner from the shop. Riccio grabbed Prosper's shoulders and shook him madly. "Prosper, Scipio will never let anyone sell his loot ever again. Boy, no one would ever dare tell him off like that" Riccio said excitedly. "Yeah, but those things are probably worth even more" Prosper said carelessly and Riccio jumped on Prosper's back and jumped off two seconds later. Katelyn patted Prosper on the back hard and jumped in front of him. "That really was amazing Prop, you really showed that pig" Katelyn said grinning. The three kept on walking but stopped when Riccio passed a pastry store. "Prosper, Katelyn come back!" he called and gestures to them. Prosper and Katelyn walked to where Riccio was waving to them. "What is it Riccio" Katelyn said. "We've gotta get some of this. Look at all this stuff, let's celebrate with it" Riccio said gazing longly at the pastries. "Sounds good to me, what about you Prop" Katelyn said. "We should get the money back to the other first" Prosper said and Katelyn was about to answer when a man placed his hand on Prosper's shoulder. "Excuse me young man, you're name's Prosper isn't it?" he asked and Prosper took off running. Riccio and Katelyn looked at each for a second and Prosper head butted the man in the chest while Katelyn stomped on the man's foot with the heel of her boot took off after Prosper. "WAHOO!" Katelyn called. "Take that boneface!" Riccio called. Prosper ran down the stone steps that led near the canal and pulled Riccio and Katelyn into an open part of a wall in an alley and stayed there until they saw him leaving. "Okay cool it, so what if he knew your name" Riccio said puffing. "Yeah, what's the big deal?" Katelyn said puffing as well. "I think he's trying to get me" Prosper said. "Maybe you're conning me for the cash" Riccio suggested. "Yeah and leave my brother behind" Prosper said sarcastically. "Uhh guys, we got company' Katelyn said and pointed down the alley. At the end of the alleyway was the man. Riccio flattened them against the stone wall. "Maybe you're right" Prosper whispered. "This way" Kaitlyn said and pulled them to the left and they ran out of the alley way. "Who is he?" Prosper asked. "Some kind of private detective, Victor the snoop, that's what we call him" Riccio said. "Well he's about to live up to his name" Kaitlyn said. They managed to get out of the allies and were by the docks and a boat was almost about to go into the canal. Prosper, Riccio, and Katelyn ran up the gangplank just before the detective caught to them, the boat was about to leave but the three of them jumped aboard. The three ran to the back and saw him stomp his foot on the pole in frustration. Katelyn couldn't help but smirk in success. "HEY!" Riccio called out and waved him arms but Katelyn and Prosper yanked them down and glared at him. When the boat docked at the next stop they went into the nearest shop and spent as much as they needed for a feast for tonight.


	3. The Thief Queen

Chapter 3

The Thief Queen

That night at dinner everyone was pigging out on sausage, olives, pastries, and cakes. Scipio sat at the head of the table and instead of his usual trench coat and boots he had on a black and white striped shirt and black high top converse but kept his jeans. "Here's to Prop" Scipio said raising his glass in a toast. "Cheers" everyone else said and clicked glasses. "And cheers to Katelyn for becoming part of the gang" Bo said and Katelyn gave him a sweet smile. "Thank you Bo I almost forgot, and cheers to Katelyn for becoming part of the family" Scipio said raising his glass once more and the other clicked their glasses once again. Katelyn felt her face flush with embarrassment but smiled anyway. "From now on you're our chief loot server. In fact you've done so well I think I'm going to give myself a little break" Scipio said. "But you can't stop, not now. Barbarossa's got a customer, he's looking for a thief, said there's big money in it" Riccio said. "And I'll help you Scip, I'll come with you" Bo said and Scipio smiled warmly at the little guy. "No you won't, don't be so stupid" Prosper said to Bo. "Scipio gave me a kitten so I'm gonna help him with stealing and that's that" Bo said. Scipio closed his eyes and thought for a second and opened them again and smiled. "I'll do it, bigger money equals bigger plans" he knelt down to Bo's level and smiled "and bigger cakes to buy" he smiled and Bo's face lit up. "See" Bo said to Prosper. "Scipio, think you could use a second thief" Katelyn said. "You're a thief" Hornet said. "Yeah, that's how Scipio found me when I was raiding the same house he was doing" Katelyn said. "That actually sounds like a good idea Katelyn" Scipio said. Katelyn smiled in pleasure and noticed that Scipio had a slight blush on his face. "Does she have a name?" Mosca said. "Afraid not" Katelyn said shrugging. "Well she definitely needs one. I was thinking maybe the Thief Queen" Scipio said. "That sounds great" Hornet said. "It kind of fits her" Mosca said. Scipio glared at him and Katelyn blushed but put on a cocky smirk. "It is true, I did say that I was the best thief in Italy" Katelyn said. "We'll just see" Scipio said crossing his arms. After dinner everyone was so full that they decided to go to bed early. Katelyn lay awake on her mattress and thought about what they had said at dinner. "The Thief Queen, I kind of like the sound of that" she whispered but she blushed at thought of being someone's queen. 'I can't like Scipio like that, could I?" she thought to herself and drifted off to sleep.

The next day Riccio, Prosper, and Katelyn were to go back to Barbarossa's shop and tell him that Scipio accepted the raid and that Katelyn was going to go with him as the Thief Queen. When they got there Barbarossa was tweezing his nose hairs with a tweezer. Katelyn had a look of disgust on her face while Riccio was making faces at Barbarossa behind his back and Katelyn had to keep a hand on her mouth the keep herself from giggling. "My customer will meet the Thief Lord and the Thief Queen in the confessional of the back left of the Basilica San Marco and Conte likes to shroud himself in mystery" Barbarossa said. "They'll fit right in, the Thief Queen is a woman of myster" Kateyln said. 'I've never even heard of the Thief Queen until now, why the sudden new thief" Barbarossa asked suspiciously. "He met her last night and offered her the idea" Riccio said and Barbarossa shrugged. "Is he a real Conte?" Prosper asked. "Are you daft! What did I just say!" Barbarossa shrieked but calmed down. "He is a real Conte, is there anything more you need to know?" Barbarossa asked. "We need find out what time" Prosper said. "Three o clock sharp and I reserved the right to fly off the handle whenever I feel like it thanks you very much" Barbarossa said in a sickening sweet voice that made Katelyn glare. "Three o clock, Baptist chapel, Basilica, confessional, got it, come on Prop, Katelyn" Riccio said but Barbarossa grabbed Riccio's shoulder and stopped him. "Hold on Hedgehog boy, you, your snotty little friend, and girlfriend tag along if you want but your master and his lady have to be there in person, got it" Barbarossa snapped. "The Thief Lord and Thief Queen won't like that" Riccio said. "Than they don't get the job" Barbarossa said and the three rushed out of the store and back to the Stella.


	4. The Conte

Chapter 4

The Conte

They rushed back to the Stella and told Scipio all the information. Katelyn attached her cloak to her shoulders and slipped on her mask. Katelyn had to admit that it felt kind of good feeling the dark mask shroud her blue eyes and give her a face of mystery. When she walked down the stairs she saw that Scipio was dressed in his trench coat, boots, and mask. "You ready Katelyn?" he said. "Yep, let's get down there" she said and the gang walked out the Stella, locked it, and headed out into the square.

The square was alive with tourists and people that lived in Venice. Katelyn thought that they had caused kind of a scene when they walked into the square all lined up like an army. Scipio led them with his head held arrogantly, Katelyn followed behind him with a swagger in her step and cape slightly fluttering in the wind, Prosper was behind Katelyn, and Mosca, Hornet, Riccio, and Bo as the last person. When they finally got the church they all huddled together. "Prosper, Mosca you come inside with me and Katelyn while the others wait out here" Scipio said. "But I don't want to wait here" Bo said. "Yeah, me neither why can't we all go?" Riccio asked. "Because Scipio said so, is that not a good enough reason for you" Hornet said and led the others into the square while Scipio led Katelyn, Prosper, and Mosca into the church.

The church was vast with benches sitting in the hall, candles were in the walls lit, it was also kind of dark. "I don't like churches, they give me the creeps" Mosca whispered. "Suck it up Mosca" Katelyn said rolling her eyes and the four walked into the confessional that they were supposed to meet the Conte. It was kind of a tight squeeze and Katelyn ended up being pressed against Scipio's chest and thank goodness it didn't look like they were cuddling because Prosper and Mosca were squished in also. "Perhaps he's not here yet" Mosca whispered and just after he said this, the curtain opened and revealed an old man with large glasses and very few hairs. "One should not wear a mask in church anymore than a hat" the Conte said. Katelyn narrowed her eyes behind the black mask. "One should not plan a theft in a confessional either" Scipio said. "And that's what were hear for, right" Katelyn said. "So, you two are the Thief Lord and the Thief Queen. Well keep your masks if you must I can still see you both are very young" the Conte said. "Yes, and you are very old, does age matter in this transaction?" Scipio said coolly. "Not in the least" the Conte said and coughed a few times. "So, Senor Barbarossa has surely told you that I am looking for someone to retrieve something for me, something I have searched for many long years" the Conte said. "What about the payment?" Katelyn asked. "I see you are a businesswoman your fee will be fifty thousand payable upon delivery" the Conte said. "Fifty thousand" Katelyn said with half her breath caught in her throat. "Sounds like a fair price" Scipio said. "But is the item valuable?" Katelyn said. "This item you are about to steal is of great value only to me. It is made neither of gold, not of silver, but of wood" the Conte said. "When should we deliver it to you?" Scipio asked. "As soon as your skills permit, I am an old man I have only one wish left in this world, to hold in my hands which you two are to steal for me" the Conte said and Katelyn almost felt sorry for the old man. "How will we know how to find you?" Scipio asked. "You will find everything you need in this confessional when I have left. Send me word of your success and you will receive a letter from me the very next day at Barbarossa's" the Conte said and stepped back a step and quickly shut the curtain. "Well that went well" Katelyn said and Prosper and Mosca managed to move out of the confessional which gave Katelyn enough room to get off of Scipio's chest and get out of the confessional. Prosper went into the part of the confessional where the Conte was previously was and brought out a basket and a letter. "A basket, what's inside" Mosca said. "We're about to find out" Katelyn said. "I think it's alive" Prosper said and held the basket up a few feet and gave it to Scipio. "Don't open it, it's probably a poisonous snake" Mosca said. "I highly doubt that" Katelyn said and Scipio started to look through the basket. Scipio pulled out a medium sized gray pigeon. "It's a homing pigeon" Prosper said. "See Mosca, I told you it wasn't a snake" Katelyn said and playfully swatted Mosca on the shoulder. "Let's get out of here" Mosca whispered and the three left the dark church and were back out in the sunny Canal. "Where's Bo?" Prosper said when they found Hornet and Riccio. "Over there" Katelyn said and pointed to where Bo was just talking to a man with a blue jacket and red hat. The gang ran over to Bo and Prosper knelt down to Bo and lifted him up on to his hip. Prosper ran after the man Bo was talking to and the rest of the group followed. Scipio took off his mask and made a gesture for Katelyn to take off her mask and cape, which she did and strapped the cape to a belt around her waist. Scipio led them to a shop with strange looking masks and led the group into the back of the shop and looked Bo right in the eye. "This Victor figure, what did he ask you?' Scipio asked. "He asked me my name" Bo said in a small voice. "Did you tell him" Scipio asked but Bo refused to answer. "What else did you tell him Bo?" Hornet asked. "I'm not sure, did Aunt Esther send him?" Bo asked Prosper. Katelyn rolled her eyes in irritation and slapped her hand to her eyes. Prosper frowned at Bo sternly. "But he was friendly" Bo protested. "Bo how many times do I have to tell you not to talk to" Prosper said firmly but Bo cut him off. "I know, I know, but he was funny" Bo said and Katelyn put an arm around his shoulders and gave him a small but comforting hug. "What was he wearing?" Scipio asked. "I think a blue jacket and red cap" Katelyn said. "And he's watching from the window" Bo said and Scipio looked towards the window and saw the man Bo described standing on the bridge waiting for them. "Here's the plan, Prospergive me your jacket and take mine. I'll lead the snoop away and give you guys enough time to escape. Hornet and Katelyn, when I get him to the grand Canal you two make a scene and try to get away and run back to the Stella" Scipio said and the others nodded. Scipio took off his trench coat and gave his jacket and mask to Riccio and slipped on Prosper's tan jacket and pulled the hood up. Scipio walked out of the shop and went after the snoop, who just ran away. Hornet and Katelyn slipped out next and went towards the grand Canal to wait for Scipio and the snoop. Prosper, Mosca, Riccio, and Bo ran out of the shop last with the basket in hand and headed to the Stella. Just as Hornet and Katelyn arrived at the grand Canal Scipio had cornered the snoop. "This will be fun" Katelyn said smirking and she and Hornet ran to the snoop and latched their fists to his jacket and starting their lungs off. Let me go you worthless pig!" Hornet screamed. "Help, he's trying to kidnap and rape us!" Katelyn screamed and all hell broke loose. Ladies started hitting him with their large purses and Hornet managed to grab his wallet and the two girls ran back to the Stella.


	5. The rooftop

Chapter 5

The rooftop

Hornet and Katelyn ran back to the Stella laughing their butts off. "That was hilarious when you screamed that he was going to rape us" Hornet said tears forming at the corners of her eyes. "No, what was funny when you called him a worthless pig" Katelyn said laughing as hard as Hornet was. The two girls entered the lobby of the Stella and saw that the others were already there. Katelyn saw that Scipio was wearing his black and white striped shirt and was about to read the letter from the Conte. "I took his wallet, so you can find out some more about the snooper" Hornet said and gave the wallet to Prosper. "Thank you" he said and started looking through its contents. "Come on Scip, what is it" Mosca asked and Katelyn joined them. Scipio ran his fingers through his dark hair and opened the envelope, he pulled out a photograph. "It's a wing" he said and Mosca pulled it out of his fingers. "Like a lion's wing" Bo piped up. "Probably an angel's wing made of wood, just like the Conte said" Mosca said. "Fifty thousand for a wooden wing" Hornet said and took the photograph. "Sounds like an easy steal" Katelyn said. "Don't get cocky" Prosper said. "Maybe we're missing something" Hornet said. "Perhaps this will explain it" Scipio said and started reading the letter. "The wing in the photograph is a counterpart to what I'm looking for. The pigeon's name is Sophia and she's a friendly, independent creature. When you have the wing set her free and she will find me". Bo held one of kittens to the basket that contained Sophia. "Bo I wouldn't do that if I were you" Katelyn said. "Why not?' Bo asked frowning in confusion. "Because the cats might eat the pigeon" Katelyn said. "I'm sorry" Bo said. "It's al right, no harm done" Prosper said and put an arm around Bo. "Stake out the house, find everything you can, I'll meet you there Wednesday at ten. I have to go now and will be out of the city again for a couple of days" Scipio said getting up. "Scip, please let us help you and Katelyn with this job, not just the staking out but stealing" Riccio asked. "Sounds fine to me" Katelyn said. "Okay, why not you're right, I might need my trusty cohorts for this assignment" Scipio said. "And don't forget your thief partner" Katelyn said smirking. "Don't worry" Scipio said winking and got up and left. The rest of the day was spent relaxing and doing whatever anyone wanted as long as they didn't leave the theatre.

That night Katelyn couldn't sleep due to thinking of the raid. She never admitted it but she loved stealing even if it was something small but she loved the adrenaline pumping through her veins. Katelyn also couldn't get a pair of dark chocolate eyes out of her head. "I need to go outside" she grumbled and got off of her mattress, grabbed her cloak and clipped it to her shirt and climbed the stair to the roof. She shivered at the cold of the night even though she was wearing her cloak and sat down at the foot of a statue. Katelyn hummed one of her favorite songs from her favorite musical and pretty soon she was singing it.

Katelyn:

_**In sleep he sang to me**_  
_**In dreams he came**_  
_**That voice that calls to me and speaks my name**_  
_**And do I dream again for now I find**_  
_**The Phantom of the Opera is there**_  
_**Inside my mind**_

A deep voice sang out the second part and Katelyn and thinking that maybe a phantom haunted the theatre. But the voice turned out to be Scipio from the shadows.

Scipio:

_**Sing once again with me**_  
_**Our strange duet**_  
_**My power over you grows stronger yet**_  
_**And though you turn from me to glance behind**_  
_**The Phantom of the Opera is there**_  
_**Inside your mind**_

Katelyn sang like the way Christine Daae could have done it and probably put her to shame.

Katelyn:

**_Those who have seen your face_**  
**_Draw back in fear_**  
**_I am the mask you wear_**

Scipio:

_**It's me they hear...**_

The both of them sang the next part that had them sing at the same time and the two sang so well they could have very much passed for Christine and the Phantom. Katelyn noticed that Scipio had fully emerged from the shadows and was in his coat, mask, and boots so he very much looked like a phantom more than a master thief.

Both:

_**Your/My spirit and my/your voice in one combined**_  
_**The Phantom of the Opera is there**_  
_**Inside my/your mind**_

"Wow, you sound incredible" Scipio said a bit breathlessly. "Thanks, my mom made me take lessons before she died. What are you doing here?" Katelyn said crossing her arms over her chest and raised her eye brows. "I'm on my way but I wanted to check on everyone first" Scipio said. "You don't think that we can manage one night alone" Katelyn said smirking and Scipio frowned. "No I was just being concerned" Scipio said. "Well, look at that, the Thief Lord has concerning side" Katelyn said and raised an eye brow. "And the Thief Queen hasn't lost her cocky attitude" Scipio said and crossed his arms over his chest. Katelyn rolled her eyes and wrapped the cloak tighter around herself. Scipio walked over to her and sat down next to her. "Beautiful night" Scipio said. "Yeah but cold" Katelyn said but had a playful edge to her tone and shivered again from the cold. "Are you still cold?" he asked in concern. "Yeah" Katelyn said. "Maybe this will warm you up" he said and wrapped his arm around her and pulled her into his chest for a deep hug. Katelyn was close enough to hear his heart beat and it was beating pretty darn fast and loud. Scipio inhaled the scent of her hair, it smelled like grapes, and felt like he was in bliss. "Feeling warmer?' he asked. "A-a little" Katelyn said stuttering. "How about this?" he said smirking and leaned in and pressed his lips to her own. The kiss was deep and covered Katelyn's mouth. Katelyn pulled away but this time she gently pulled off Scipio's mask and quickly put her lips back on his. This time the kiss was more passionate and the two were fighting for control but eventually no one won out and they just sat there in heaven. When they finally pulled apart they had deep blushes on their faces. "Why did you kiss me in the first place?" Katelyn asked. "Because, I like you, I really like you" Scipio said and played around with his mask, his eyes shut and was anticipating for rejection but Katelyn place her fingers under Scipio's chin and pulled him up to have him look her in the eyes and Katelyn placed her lips on his again, but this time it was gentle but real. "What does that tell you" she asked smirking but it was on the borderline of a smile. "That I'll like the answer" Scipio said and the two leaned in for another kiss. As they kissed Scipio ran his fingers through her blonde almost brown hair and Katelyn ran her fingers through his dark brown hair and feeling all of the locks in the wavy hair. When they finally pulled apart they stared into each other's eyes with love. "Was that your first kiss?" Scipio asked. "Yeah and I'm glad it was you" Katelyn said and looked down at the ground shyly. "Me too, I have to go but I promise I'll be back in a couple of days and we'll get the Conte's wing" Scipio said and placed his mask on. "Anything you say Thief Lord" Katelyn said seductively. "Thank you Thief Queen" he said with a seductive grin and jumped from the Stella's ceiling to the next building's and so on. Katelyn crossed her arms and smiled and her head and heart were fluttering. She practically skipped back to bed and crawled under the sheets and was instantly asleep and was filled with dreams of a certain thief.


	6. Capturing victor

The next morning everyone was going about their normal business, Hornet was reading, Riccio was talking to Prosper, Mosca was working on his movie, and Bo was playing with one of the kittens. Katelyn jumped down the stairs two at a time with a smile on her face. Bo walked over to Mosca with a kitten in his arms. "When's you film going to be finished?" Bo asked. "Any day now but we need the projector to watch it" Mosca said. "What's it about?" Bo asked but before Mosca could answer the bell rang. The others ran to the center and didn't know if whether to answer the door or not. "Let me in" Scipio's voice said outside and it sounded like he had been running. "I'll go see who it is" Prosper said. "I'm coming with you" Mosco said and Bo walked over. "You stay here" Prosper said to Bo and the two went to the door. Prosper opened the door and was surprised to see Scipio. Katelyn was even more surprised to see Scipio in clothes that rich boy would wear instead of his usual black and white shirt, jeans, and boots. "Scipio" Prosper said. "Who else did you think it was" Scipio snapped and walked in. "You said you were going away" Mosca said. "What's going on here Scip" Katelyn said. "Lock the door, quick" Scipio ordered and Prosper bolted the door. Scipio ran into the theatre and faced everyone. "We've got to get out of here now" Scipio said. "Scipio, what the hell's going on" Katelyn said. "There's no time to explain, the snoop's found out about this place. Get what you need and let's go" Scipio said. "Damn it" Katelyn hissed through gritted teeth. "How did the snoop find out" Riccio said. "Where are we supposed to go" Mosca said. Scipio looked at the ground as though he were thinking of something. "We're staying right here" Hornet said firmly and the others turned to look at her.

An hour later they were all hiding behind the curtain and were waiting for Victor to come in. He finally came in and started looking for them. "Bo, go ahead" Prosper whispered to Bo and Bo peeped from behind the curtain. "Hey Victor" he said and Victor turned around. "Have you got a gun?" Bo asked. "Of course, wanna see it" Victor said and reached into his jacket pocket. "I'm not scared it's probably a fake one anyway" Bo said. "Well aren't you a little smarty pants" Victor mumbled and walked to the stage. Bo disappeared behind the curtain as Victor climbed the stage. When he got behind the curtain, Bo gave the signal. "Now!" he cried and they all jumped on Victor and tied him down. Scipio sat on Victor and Katelyn was on her knee and her foot was on Victor's stomach and they were both grinning. "You, you brat" Victor spat and Scipio shoved a dirty rag in his mouth. "That'll teach you to cross swords with the Thief Lord" Scipio said. "And the Thief Queen" Katelyn said and Scipio slapped Victor's cheeks. "Ask him how he found us" Riccio said. "Why? He'll just tell us lies like all grownups do" Scipio said and Katelyn nodded in agreement. "Just throw him in the canal then" Riccio said. "I like that idea" Katelyn said and Victor's eyes widened in fear. Scipio had Riccio and Mosca throw Victor in a janitorial closet until they could figure out what to do with him.

Scipio disappeared for most of the day but had Prosper, Hornet, Riccio, and Katelyn take a look at the house they needed to rob for the wing. The house was a large villa and was in the upper part of the city. "So what do we do now, how do we get in?" Hornet asked. Riccio turned to look at his right and saw a large woman carrying grocery bags and was walking a little dog. "Hey look, she must be the housekeeper. I think I'll have a little chat with her" he said and walked over to the woman. Riccio purposely bumped into her groceries which made the bag fall to the ground. "Watch out! What the devil were you meaning running into me like that are you thieving, little, pick pocket or something" she said and Katelyn would have walked right up to her and slapped her in Prosper didn't grab her arm. Riccio picked up the groceries and put them back in the bag and carried the bag. "No, sorry about your shopping, I'm just looking for Dr. Spavento. He's my new dentist" Riccio took off his hat and pointed to his ruined teeth to show her that he needed a dentist. "Is that his surgery?" Riccio pointed to the rooms. "What does he think he's doing?" Hornet said. "I have no idea, but you know with Riccio, he's always got a plan" Katelyn said raising her eye brows. "Let me help you with your groceries" Riccio said and picked up the bag and ran to the gate of the villa with the woman behind him. "I'm impressed" Katelyn said and they walked around a magazine stand. "What about Scip, shouldn't we have waited" Prosper asked Hornet. "No I heard he got held up somewhere. Don't worry he trusts us" Hornet said. "I'm not worried about trust" Katelyn said and just as they rounded the corner of the magazine stand an old man came around and glared at them. "What are you kids doing? If you don't want to buy a paper than get lost" he snapped. "We're not annoying anyone" Hornet said. "Yeah, what's the problem" Katelyn said frowning. "You're annoying me and you're giving m heartburn and you're disturbing my valuable customers" the man said. "They're not disturbing me" a cool female voice said. Katelyn turned around and saw a woman with short blonde hair in a bob style give the man back the book she was reading. "Very well Signora, if you say so" the man said and walked away. "So what are you all up to?" she asked. Katelyn was about to answer when Riccio came back holding an ice cream sandwich. "None of your business" he said with his mouth full of ice cream. "Charming" the woman said raising her eye brows and Katelyn nudged Riccio sharply in the ribs. "Sorry Signora, he's just a bit upset" Hornet said. "Oh, well why don't you go find an adventure" the woman said. "We're not allowed to do anything without permission from our mother" Riccio said and put on a fake innocent child's face but he meant it in a sarcastic way. "Oh well that's a shame" she said doing the same. "I would always get into trouble when I was your age, it was worth it, the excitement of the unknown" the woman said. "That's what my mom used to say when she was alive" Prosper said. "You must miss her very much" the woman said and looked sympathetic and this time she was sincere about it and not sarcastic. "I do" Proper said. The woman smiled and walked away leaving the three alone. "Come on guys let's head home" Katelyn said and they started to go home.


	7. A liar called scipio

When they got back to the Stella they were hoping that Scipio was back so they could tell him all about the house but when Prosper rang the doorbell Bo appeared. "Where's Mosca? I told you not to come to the door" Prosper said. "Mosca's busy he's fixing the projector with Victor" Bo said. "What, Mosca let him go" Katelyn said and they practically ran in the door of the theatre and climbed up to the projection room. When they reached the projection room they saw Mosca with Victor fixing the projector. "I don't believe it, this is your idea of keeping watch. How did you untie him?" Riccio ranted. "Calm down Riccio, he gave me his word of honor that he would not run away" Mosca said putting up his hands in defeat. "Exactly, Victor's our friend now" Bo said. "Are you guys insane" Katelyn said slapping her hand to her eyes. "Friend, are you dumb you city haired baby" Riccio said clutching his head in outrage. "I'm not a city haired baby, I knew he was my friend so there" Bo said frowning. "He's our prisoner, our enemy" Riccio said. "Scipio's not gonna like this" Katelyn said. "Are you kidding, Scip's going to go bolistic when he finds out about this" Riccio said. "Where is he anyway?" Mosca asked. "He didn't show up" Hornet said. "You don't say" Victor said sarcastically. "What's that supposed to mean?" Katelyn asked folding her arms over her chest. "Spit it out fat face" Riccio snapped. "Well aren't you the charming little rodent, I'm afraid you've all fallen under the spell of a liar" Victor said smirking and Katelyn and Riccio lunged at him. Riccio managed to punch him in the nose and Katelyn scratched his forehead with her nails. "Stop, stop it both of you" Prosper said and grabbed Riccio while Hornet grabbed Katelyn. "And you stop talking in riddle or we won't hold them back next time" Prosper said glaring at Victor and Victor was rubbing sore nose and forehead. "What a threat, I could show you where to find the answers to these riddles though I won't suppose you'll believe me" Victor said. Katelyn calmed down enough for Hornet to let her go. "We're listening" Katelyn said crossing her arms over her chest.

The gang walked up to a very large that was in the rich part of Venice and Katelyn recognized that this was the house where she had first met Scipio. "Guys wait out here while Bo and I get to the bottom of this" Prosper whispered. "No way, I'm going with you guys" Katelyn said. "Fine" Prosper said sighing and he, Bo, and Katelyn walked up to the large door and Prosper banged the knocker on the door. A maid came out and wasn't looking too pleased to see them. "Good evening signora, do you have a boy called Scip here?' Prosper asked politely. "What is this some stupid mischief" she snapped and Katelyn narrowed her eyes so much that it freaked the woman out a tad. "We were supposed to meet him today, Bo, Prosper, Hornet, Katelyn, Riccio, and Mosca, we're his friends" Bo said innocently. "Come in there" she said irritably and gestured for Prosper and Bo to come inside but stopped the rest from coming in. "Two's enough" she said and shut the door. "What a bitch" Katelyn said crossing her arms over her chest. "You're right, that was extremely rude" Hornet said. "Anyone feel like sneaking in through the windows?" Katelyn asked. "NO!" all three of them cried in unison.

Half an hour later Prosper and Bo came out with frowns of anger on their faces. "See I told you it wasn't our Scip" Riccio said. "Yes it was" Prosper said. "And his dad's a meanie" Bo said. "His what" Mosca said. "What's going on Prosper and how does this have to do with Scip?" Katelyn asked. "That was his dad" Prosper said with a sharp edge to his voice. "What are you talking about, Scip doesn't have a dad" Riccio said and Prosper turned around to face him. "Why don't you go introduce yourself" Prosper said and kept walking and Riccio ran back to the house and started pounding on the door. Scipio, Scipio I know you're in there, come on out and start explaining, open the door, open the door!" Riccio cried out and the door was quickly opened and a man with blonde hair and brown eyes that looked like Scipio's came out and he looked as mad as hell. "What the devil's going on! I don't know who you are and what business you have with my son here" he yanked Scipio to the doorframe and Katelyn could see that he was looking incredibly guilty with himself. "But if you know what's good for you you'll stop this infernal racket and take yourself and your disgusting little friends away from here and never let me see you around this house again" he said and shoved Scipio back into the house and slammed the door. Riccio face away from the door but leaned against it and for the first time that Katelyn has been there she saw Riccio crying. Katelyn walked over to Riccio and put her arm around his shoulders in a comforting way. She narrowed her eyes in anger. All this time she had been working with a fake thief. She knew that she was a real thief and not some rich spoiled brat who had never stolen a real damn thing that wasn't from his home. "Come on Riccio, he's not worth it, both Scipio and his father are bastards and are nothing but a piece of crap from hell" Katelyn said and pulled him closer. Riccio started to calm down. "Thanks Katelyn" he said and Katelyn smiled. "You're welcome, now lets go home" she said and helped Riccio to his feet and the gang headed home with rage and sadness in their hearts.


	8. Katelyn's night swim in the canal

When they got back to the Stella they saw that it was completely empty and a medium sized chalkboard was in front of the stage so they could see it when they walked it. "What's it say Hornet?" Katelyn asked. "Victor's word of honor, the Hartliebs will not hear a word from me unless I find out about strange break ins" Hornet read and Katelyn felt like punching the chalkboard. "We have to catch him again and this time I swear he's going into the canal and Scipio can go with him for all I care" Riccio said. "Make that Victor, Scipio, and Scipio's father can go in the canal" Katelyn said through gritted teeth. "What's this mean, Enjoy the Show" Hornet said reading the last part from the chalkboard. "Enjoy the show, I don't believe it, he must've done it" Mosca said overjoyed and ran up to the projection room. Mosca turned off the light and started the projector and the movie came on. "Mosca films presents 'A Film By Mosca' Prince of the World" Mosca said out loud. The film had a black background and pictures that looked like they had been drawn up told the story and Mosca did the dialogue. "It ain't half bad Mosca" Katelyn called up to Mosca in the projection room. When the film ended everyone was on their hands clapping. "He fixed it, even the curtain and the dimmer light" Mosca said. "See, I told you Victor's our friend now" Bo said and Riccio got up. "Okay, so he fixed the projector, whoop de doo, what about the deal with the Conte. We can't forget that just because Victor sneaks says so" Riccio said. "Do any of you besides Katelyn actually know about breaking in?" Prosper asked. "He's right since Scip's not gonna be of any help" Katelyn said. "Who cares about Scipio, we'll do it without him. Look, once we got the fifty thousand we won't need anyone, no grownups, no phony Thief Lord. We'll do it tonight, the sooner the better" Hornet said. "Whatever" Katelyn said rolling her eyes and got up to leave. "Where are you going?' Hornet asked. "Out for a walk" Katelyn said. "Don't go and tell Scipio that we're going without him" Riccio said. "Do I look stupid enough as to do that" Katelyn snapped and put her hands on her hips. "Well you do have the hots for him" Riccio said and Katelyn could have slapped him. "What are you talking about, I'm just going on a walk, what's wrong with that" Katelyn snapped. "Nothing and we know that you have a thing for Scip" Riccio said. "I'm out of here" Katelyn said and walked out the door of the theatre and walked down the streets.

The streets of Venice glowed in the night and Katelyn felt like the girl she used to be before she met Scipio and the others. Katelyn didn't know where she was going until her feet found themselves to Scipio's house. "Why the hell am I here?" she asked herself and sat down at the dock. She didn't hear footsteps behind her until she felt a gentle hand clasp her shoulder. Katelyn turned around and looked into Scipio's brown eyes. He was wearing his signature black and white striped shirt, jeans, and converse. "What are you doing here?' Katelyn asked him bitterly. "Last I checked this was my house" Scipio replied but Katelyn turned away without answering. "Look, I know you're mad about all of this but-" Scipio was cut off but Katelyn. "No you listen 'Thief Lord' you lied to all of us about being a thief with no parents when you are nothing but a sad little rich boy with parents, you don't even know what it's like being an orphan" Katelyn said. "Wanna bet, you know nothing about me" Scipio said through gritted teeth. "It doesn't take a genius to know about your life" Katelyn said. "Did you know that my father doesn't give a damn about me, that he was about to send me to live with his brother cause' he wants me away from him, he even said that I was a nuisance!" Scipio shouted. "Scipio, I didn't know about all that" Katelyn said. "Wouldn't surprise me" Scipio said. "Please forgive me, I'm sorry" Katelyn said softly now on the verge of tears. Scipio sat down and put an arm around her and pulled her close. "How could I stay mad at you for a long time?" he said and put his lips to her cheek. Katelyn looked at him and all of the emotions that she had when she and Scipio had kissed on the roof came back to her. She moved her lips to his and kissed him softly and it became more passionate. Scipio wrapped his arms around her waist and she wrapped hers around his neck and pulled him closer. Scipio simply moved his weight but since he was sitting so close to the dock accidentally slipped off and took Katelyn with him. They both came back up sputtering but Scipio still had his arms around Katelyn. "Nice going" Katelyn said laughing. "Well, sorry" Scipio said smiling. "Quit smiling and get over here" Katelyn said and grabbed Scipio by the collar of his shirt and pulled him to her. They locked lips and managed to tread water. Scipio licked Katelyn's bottom lip asking for entrance and Katelyn gladly gave it to him and Scipio's tongue explored every inch of Katelyn's mouth and she did the same to Scipio's mouth. Katelyn wrapped her legs around Scipio's waist and since they were in water she was practically weightless in his arms and Scipio wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close. When they finally pulled apart Scipio smiled shyly. "Katelyn I have to tell you something" he said. "I'm listening" she said but still held on to his neck. "Ever since I met you I thought that you were an average thief and I was impressed by that and later on I thought of you like a sister but now I've realized my feelings. Katelyn I love you" Scipio said truthfully. Katelyn was startled for a second but she was also glad that he loved her because she loved him back. "I love you too Scip" Katelyn said and kissed him again. When they pulled away they touched each other's foreheads and looked into each others eyes. "I guess we better get going, the others are going to be waiting for me and I've got to get changed" Katelyn said and released her legs from Scipio's waist and touched the canal floor. Scipio lifted her up be her foot on to the dock and Katelyn gave him a hand up. "I'll see you later, Thief Lord" Katelyn said smirking. "Same to you, Thief Queen" Scipio said with a smirk and kissed Katelyn on the cheek and ran back into the house. Katelyn took off running the other direction back to the Stella.


	9. The Raid At Ida Spavento's

(Author's note: hey guys I am so sorry for not updating but hopefully this will make it up.)

When Katelyn got back to the Stella the others were waiting for her with their arms crossed and had frowns on their faces. "Where the hell were you?" Mosca asked. "Taking a walk like I said" Katelyn said crossing her arms. "Well why are you dripping wet?" Riccio asked. "I tripped and fell in the canal, now if you'll excuse me I need to go get changed" Katelyn said and walked up the stairs. It was a good thing that she kept a spare outfit with her. She changed out of her wet clothes in the bathroom and set them on the tub to dry and changed into her dry one. She clipped on her cape and slipped on her mask going down the stairs. "You guys ready to get ourselves a wing" she said with a grin. "Yeah, let's go" Hornet said. "What about Prosper and Bo?" Katelyn asked. "They didn't want to come so it's just the four of us" Mosca said. "Fine with me" Riccio said. "Me too, now let's go" Katelyn said and they left the Stella through the kitchen door and went into Mosca's boat.

As they moved through the canal waters all was silent. "I could have opened that kitchen door with my eyes closed" Riccio said confidently. "Yeah right" Katelyn said rolling her eyes. "What did the sailor say? Where do we go from here" Hornet asked. "I think left" Katelyn said and Mosca steered the boat. Just as they were coming under a bridge a familiar little blonde boy jumped down and landed in their boat. Katelyn stifled a gasp and almost fell out of the boat and Mosca slowed down. "Jeepers Bo, I almost had a heart attack" Mosca said. "What are you doing here?" Katelyn said clutching her chest. "You forgot something really important" Bo said. "What?" Riccio said. "It's under my jumper" Bo said. "What?" Hornet said getting impatient. "Me!" Bo said and lifted up his jacket. Katelyn smiled and sat Bo down beside her. "Keep going Mosca" she said and Mosca nodded and started up the boat.

When they arrived at Signora Spavento's home Mosca tied up the boat and they all got off. Katelyn's eyes followed the high, rough wall. Mosca swung the rope he had brought that made a makeshift grappling hook slung it over the edge. "Ladies first" Mosca said to Hornet and Katelyn. Hornet climbed over first and Katelyn followed behind her. Hornet sat on the wall and Katelyn jumped over on the other side. Katelyn saw Hornet talking to someone whose voice sounded like Prosper's. Hornet tossed down the rope and Prosper climbed the wall and jumped down and was followed by Hornet. Prosper marched over to Bo and was furious. "I should have left you with Esther" Prosper hissed. "Take it easy Prop" Katelyn said and Mosca hissed for them to be quiet. "You want to go to an orphanage or a boot camp for baby-" Prosper hissed but Bo cut him off. "I'm staying-!" Bo said loudly but was cut off by Mosca putting a hand over his mouth. "See what we mean" Hornet whispered. "Don't do that again Bo or we're all going to be in an orphanage" Katelyn said. "Yeah, I almost peed my pants" Mosca whispered and Katelyn frowned. "Gross, we didn't need to know that" Katelyn whispered. Riccio was busy at the door with screws in his mouth and holding a flashlight. "Did you get it unlocked?" Katelyn asked and Riccio nodded and opened the door and they all snuck inside. "Man this is bigger than what I thought it would be" Katelyn said shining her flashlight all around the living room of the house. The house was very large and elegant. Katelyn wondered if the woman ever got lonely and wanted company besides her house keeper. Katelyn's outfit blended within the shadows that danced along the walls of the titanic house which made her feel like a moving shadow. The group walked into the kitchen in hopes that the wing was hung up in the kitchen as a decoration but it wasn't there. "Let's try upstairs" Katelyn whispered. The others nodded, they could search upstairs if they were really quiet. They walked up the stairs to a spare room and Katelyn was secretly happy that it wasn't Signora Spavento's bedroom, lord knows how hard that it would be to search up there without getting caught if she was sleeping. "What's behind that door?" Riccio whispered and shined his light at a dark oak door with a gold handle. "Let's find out" Mosca said and walked to the door. He had his ebony hand almost on the handle when it started to turn like someone was opening it. Mosca jumped back in alarm and Katelyn had to fight herself from gasping really loud. The door swung open and a black leather gloved hand appeared on the door. Mosca shined his light on the figure and Scipio's face appeared, who jumped back in surprise at seeing his former gang. "What are you doing here? Get lost" Riccio whispered. "What are you doing here? This is my job" Scipio hissed back. "Oh shut up you lying piece of crap. This might be a big joke for a rich boy like you but we need the money" Mosca hissed, his face turned into a sour frown. Hornet put her hand on his shoulder. "Stop it, have you forgotten where we are?" she whispered. "She's right guys, we're here to find the wing not kill Scip for lying to us" Katelyn said and looked up at Scipio and gave him a small hidden smile that she managed to hide from the others. "Exactly and you can't take anything to the Conte you fibbin' lying rat toad, not even a message because we've got Sophia" Riccio said. "Come on we've got to find the wing" Mosca said went to look for it with Prosper. "Yeah and you pants on fire just stay out of our way" Riccio said and left to go help Mosca. Now only Prosper, Hornet, and Katelyn were left with Scipio. Honret went with them too, now Posper, Scipio, and Katelyn were left. "You should just go home Scipio the others are really angry" Prosper said. Scipio took off his bird mask. Katelyn kept quiet. "Are you angry? Do you understand?" Scipio questioned Prosper. The two were locked in a staring match, trying to look into each others souls. Scipio broke the staring match and walked a little ways. "I'm trying" Prosper whispered and went upstairs to look. "Scipio" Katelyn whispered. "Katelyn" Scipio whispered. His molten brown eyes looked sad and guilty. Katelyn placed her hand on his cheek and gazed into his eyes. "They'll understand soon" she whispered. "Do you understand?" Scipio asked. Katelyn took a deep breath and nodded. Scipio smiled and kissed her. "I'd knew you'd understand" Scipio said and hugged her. "I'd better get upstairs and help the others" Katelyn said. "O.K, but be careful" Scipio said. Katelyn smiled and went upstairs.

Katelyn went up the stairs and met the others in a photographers dark room. Apparently the woman liked to photography because the whole dark room was covered in pictures of children playing the square, tourists posing or watching the pigeons, and even some architecture. "Damn this woman is good" Katelyn said eyeing the photographs with her flashlight. Everyone shined their lights on every corner or shadow of the room. "Look" Bo said pointing to a picture that was hanging from the wall. "What's the matter?" Mosca asked. "The pictures" Bo said. "What's wrong guy?" Katelyn whispered and aimed her light where Mosca had his. "Oh my god" Katelyn said softly. The pictures were of Bo in the square. Hornet came into the room. "The wing's not in the living room" she said and was curious at what they were staring at. "What up?" she asked. Mosca pointed at the picture. "Scip's just gone upstairs" Prosper said. "What" Mosca hissed. "Prop look" Katelyn said and pointed to the picture. "Oh my god" Prosper said his brown eyes widening. "Upstairs, oh no" Riccio said horrified and was about to dash up the stairs to catch up with Scipio but Katelyn grabbed him by the shoulder. "Hang on a sec" she whispered. "Everybody just calm down for a minute" Hornet said trying to calm everyone down. Suddenly the lights were flickered on and a woman carrying a hunting rifle stood at the door, a furious expression on her face. The woman was average height and looked to be in her late thirties. Katelyn recognized the woman from earlier that day as the woman from the newsstand. "So, for once I decide to go out at night and what do I find when I get back; a bunch of little cat burglars creeping around my house" the woman said and Katelyn guessed that this was Ida Spavento. Riccio put his hands up over his head and looked scared. "Please don't shoot" he pleaded. Ida's face softened. "Oh, well look who it is. It's the rude little boy from the kiosk, the two girls, and the poor orphan boy. What are you after, my cameras?" she said sharply. "Please signora don't call the police" Hornet pleaded. "Oh I think that'll be the very least I will do" Ida snarled. "But we don't want your cameras" Katelyn said. "She's right, we only want the wing" Hornet said. The angered look on Ida's face faltered and was replaced by a look of confusion. "The wing, really, what do you know about my wing?" Ida asked Bo came up behind Hornet and appeared at her side, Hornet put her arm around him. "Oh and how old are you?" Ida asked when she saw Bo and put the rifle down. "Six and a quarter" Bo answered. "What have you done?" Ida asked disappointed with the fact that someone so young was living with a group of thieves. "He's my little brother he doesn't know any better" Prosper said. "Why do you have pictures of him?" Katelyn asked. Ida didn't respond. "Why have you got pictures of him!" Prosper shouted angrily. "I'm a photographer I take pictures of kids on the street. Where do you live?" she asked. Everyone was quiet for a second. "We haven't got proper homes" Prosper said quietly. "Oh I'm sorry to hear that, if it's true. Now, what do you want with my wing?" Ida asked. "Someone asked us to steal it" Mosca answered. "Asked you, who?" Ida asked. "My client who wishes to maintain the utmost confidentiality" Scipio said in a dark voice at the doorway holding the gun. Katelyn hid back a gasp and was surprised that Scipio would ever hold someone at gunpoint. "Scip don't" Katelyn whispered. Scipio's eyes met hers and they were full of apology. "Scipio put the gun down" Hornet said. "I found the wing, it was in her room, come on let's get out of here" he said. Ida made a grab for the rifle and managed to yank the weapon from Scipio's hands. "Oh just give it to me, it doesn't work anyway" Ida said. Katelyn mentally breathed a sigh of relief because even though she knew that Scipio would never purposely shoot someone he might decide to threaten Ida if she interfered with grabbing the wing. "And that I presume is my wing" Ida said pointing to a large object that was wrapped in a red blanket. "You know I'm curious, just how much does this mystery employer offer to pay you for it?" Ida asked raising her eye brows. "Fifty thousand" Hornet and Katelyn murmured. Scipio and Katelyn took off their masks, there was no need to hide their faces because they were already caught. "Fifty thousand, that's rather large" Ida said. "Not really because we have to pay for everything cause we don't have parents to raise us and we have to leave the star lair, Mosca's boat needs painting, Riccio needs new teeth, and Hornet and Katelyn need new clothes, and it's not enough actually" Bo said smiling. Katelyn was frowning at Bo, it wasn't smart to give up that much information but they were caught red handed anyway so it honestly didn't matter. Hornet held him close to her side and smiled. "Why don't you all come down stairs for a drink I need some coffee and I have a story to tell you about the wing" Ida said and walked out of the room. The others looked at each other for a moment but then followed her. Katelyn caught up to Scipio. "Well, that didn't go according to plan" she murmured. "Yeah, if she hadn't come up we'd be out the door getting the wing home" Scipio said. Katelyn took his hand. "Hey, maybe she'll help us, she seems nice enough and if she wanted to have us arrested she would have done it by now" Katelyn said. "I guess you're right" Scipio said and kissed her cheek.


End file.
